Chapter 32 Beth

Beth didn't sleep well and woke up exhausted¹. The storm had hit in full fury last night, bringing heavy wind and massive amounts or rain, dwarfing² the previous deluge³. The day before, she couldn't have imagined the water getting any deeper, but when she looked out the window, the office looked like an isolated⁴ island in the midst of the ocean. Last night, she'd pulled her car onto a spit of higher land near the magnolia tree; good thing, she realized now. It, too, was its own little island, while the water nearly reached the high floorboards of Nana's truck. The truck had always managed well in floods, but it was a good thing that the brakes had been fixed⁵. Otherwise they would have been stranded⁶. Last night, she'd taken it into town to buy a gallon of milk and a few other basic necessities, but the trip had been pointless. Everything was closed, and the only other vehicles that she'd seen on the road were utility trucks and SUVs driven by the sheriffs department. Half the town was without power, but so far their house was unaffected. If there was one bright spot, it was that TV and radio reports predicted the last of the storms would roll through today; tomorrow, hopefully, the water would begin to recede⁷. She sat in the porch swing outside while Nana and Ben we playing gin rummy at the kitchen table. It was the one game in which they were equally matched, and it kept Ben from getting bored. Later, she figured she'd let him splash around in the front yard while she went to check on the dogs. She'd probably give up any attempt to keep him dry and simply let him wear his swimsuit; when she'd gone out earlier in the morning to feed the dogs, her raincoat had been useless. Listening to the sound of the rain drumming steadily⁸ on the roof, she found her thoughts drifting to Drake. She wished for the thousandth time that she could talk to him and wondered what he would have said about the photograph. Had he, too, believed in its power? Drake had never been particularly superstitious⁹, but her heart lurched every time she recalled his inexplicable¹⁰ panic at the loss of the photo. Nana was right. She didn't know what Drake had experienced over there, and she didn't know what Logan had, either. As informed as she tried to be, none of it felt real to her. She wondered about the stress they felt, thousands of miles from home, wearing flak jackets, living among people who spoke¹¹ a foreign language, trying to stay alive. Was it impossible to believe that anyone would latch¹² on to something he believed would keep him safe? No, she decided¹³. It was no different from carrying a St. Christopher medal or a rabbit's foot. It didn't matter that there was nothing logical about it—logic didn't matter. Nor did an absolute belief in magic powers. If it made someone feel safer, it simply did. But tracking her down? Stalking her? That's where her understanding broke down. As skeptical¹⁴ as she was about Keith's intentions—or even his attempt to appear genuinely concerned for her well-being¹⁵ —she had to admit that the situation made her feel acutely vulnerable. What had Logan said ? Something about owing her? For his life, she assumed, but how? She shook her head, drained by the thoughts chasing endlessly through her mind. She looked up when she heard the door creak open. "Hey, Mom?" "Yeah, sweetie." Ben came over and took a seat beside her. "Where's Thibault? I haven't seen him yet." "He's not coming in," she said. "Because of the storm?" She hadn't told him yet, nor was she ready to. "He had some things to do," she improvised¹⁶. "Okay," Ben said. He looked out into the yard. "You can't even see the grass anymore." "I know. But the rain's supposed to stop soon." "Has it ever been like this before? When you were little?" "A couple of times. But always with a hurricane." He nodded before pushing his glasses up. She ran a hand through his hair. "I heard Logan gave you something." "I'm not supposed to talk about it," he said, his voice serious. "It's a secret." "You can tell your mom. I'm good at keeping secrets." "Nice try," he teased. "I'm not falling for that one." She smiled and leaned back, pushing the swing into motion with her feet. "That's okay. I already know about the picture." Ben looked over at her, wondering how much she knew. "You know," she went on, "for protection?" His shoulders slumped¹⁷. "He told you?" "Of course." "Oh," he said, his disappointment evident. "He told me to keep it between the two of us." "Do you have it? I'd like to see it if you do." Ben hesitated before reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a folded snapshot and handed it over. Beth opened the photo and stared, feeling a surge of memories overtake her: her last weekend with Drake and the conversation they'd had, the sight of the ferris wheel, the shooting star. Did he say anything else when he gave it to you?" Handing the photo back to him. "Aside from it being a secret I mean." "He said his friend Victor called it a lucky charm kept him safe in Iraq." She felt her pulse pick up tempo¹⁸, and she brought her face close to Ben's. "Did you say Victor called it a lucky charm?" "Uh-huh." Ben nodded. "That's what he said " "Are you sure?" "Of course I'm sure." Beth stared at her son, feeling at war with herself.

1 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

2 dwarfing   

n.矮化病

参考例句：

• In the Northwest, they are being planted by hedgerow on seedling roots, clonal and dwarfing stocks. 在西北部地区用灌木树篱把它接在实生砧、无性砧及矮化砧上。 来自辞典例句
• In the Northwest, they are being planted by hedgrow on seedling roots, clonal and dwarfing stocks. 在西北部地区把它接在实生砧、无性砧及矮化砧上。 来自辞典例句

3 deluge   

n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥

参考例句：

• This little stream can become a deluge when it rains heavily.雨大的时候，这条小溪能变作洪流。
• I got caught in the deluge on the way home.我在回家的路上遇到倾盆大雨。

4 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

5 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

6 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

7 recede   

vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进

参考例句：

• The colleges would recede in importance.大学的重要性会降低。
• He saw that the dirty water had begun to recede.他发现那污浊的水开始往下退了。

8 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

9 superstitious   

adj.迷信的

参考例句：

• They aim to deliver the people who are in bondage to superstitious belief.他们的目的在于解脱那些受迷信束缚的人。
• These superstitious practices should be abolished as soon as possible.这些迷信做法应尽早取消。

10 inexplicable   

adj.无法解释的，难理解的

参考例句：

• It is now inexplicable how that development was misinterpreted.当时对这一事态发展的错误理解究竟是怎么产生的，现在已经无法说清楚了。
• There are many things which are inexplicable by science.有很多事科学还无法解释。

11 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

12 latch   

n.门闩，窗闩；弹簧锁

参考例句：

• She laid her hand on the latch of the door.她把手放在门闩上。
• The repairman installed an iron latch on the door.修理工在门上安了铁门闩。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

15 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

16 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

17 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

18 tempo   

n.(音乐的)速度；节奏，行进速度

参考例句：

• The boss is unsatisfied with the tardy tempo.老板不满于这种缓慢的进度。
• They waltz to the tempo of the music.他们跟着音乐的节奏跳华尔兹舞。